Niemans @ Work

“Like a Box of Chocolates”: For Elaine Shannon, NF ’75, knowing when to change course paid off with a new book

By Elaine Shannon• Niemans @ Work• April 5, 2019

I went into journalism because it’s like a box of chocolates.  If you know what you’re going to get, that takes all the fun out of it. Read more

From Threatened Censorship to Box Office Hit: Many Colombians rallied behind a documentary by Margarita Martinez, NF ’09, about the long difficult path to peace

By Margarita Martinez• Niemans @ Work• January 22, 2019

I was ready for the premiere of my film. For five years, I’d been working on a behind-the-scenes documentary about the torturous and ultimately successful negotiations between the Colombian government and the FARC guerrillas. “The Negotiation”—“La Negociación” … Read more

The five-hour work day? She’s got it covered: Financial Times columnist Pilita Clark, NF ’97, takes on the modern workplace

By Pilita Clark• Niemans @ Work• November 14, 2018

Did you know it sometimes helps to work when slightly drunk? What about the companies asking their staff to work five-hour days for the same pay? Or the idea that office smokers are … Read more

“I can’t imagine our community without the Advocate”: Editor and publisher Chris Cobler, NF ’06, prioritizes holding local officials accountable while pushing to keep 172-year-old paper on sound financial footing

By Chris Cobler• Niemans @ Work• November 8, 2018

Our family-owned newspaper, the Victoria (Texas) Advocate, is an exception to the corporate media strategy of squeezing out every last cent of the brand until it has no value left. The owners’ roots in Victoria run three … Read more

 “An Orgy of Mass Murder”: In a new book, James M. Scott, NF ’07, investigates World War II atrocities in the Philippines

By James M. Scott• Niemans @ Work• October 30, 2018

In February 1945, during the Battle of Manila, Japanese troops committed one of the worst massacres of World War II, slaughtering tens of thousands of Filipino men, women, and children in a tragedy comparable perhaps only to the Rape of … Read more

“Money Stories are People Stories”: After decades as a business journalist, Marilyn Geewax, NF ’95, turns to teaching to inspire the next generation

By Marilyn Geewax• Niemans @ Work• June 25, 2018

Except for my Nieman year, I had been staring down deadlines every work day since age 22. So after four decades of newsroom stresses, I moved back to Atlanta, where I had worked for many years for … Read more

Investing in the Next Crop of Promising Media Companies: Maya Baratz Jordan, a 2016 Knight Visiting Nieman Fellow, on key ingredients for success and openings in a new accelerator program

By Maya Baratz Jordan• Niemans @ Work• March 26, 2018

After years of building digital products for companies ranging from Flickr to The Wall Street Journal to ABC News, I made a move to the investing side to help support and coach the next crop of companies that will meaningfully … Read more

In the Transformation to an Information Company, Bringing in Substantial Revenue: Chronicle of Higher Education editor in chief Michael Riley, NF ’95, leads a team creating in-depth reports that are a new revenue stream

By Michael Riley• Niemans @ Work• March 2, 2018

I spend many of my waking hours—and some of my sleeping hours, too—thinking about how best to ensure the health and long-term growth of The Chronicle of Higher Education Inc., where I’m president and editor in chief. Read more

Identifying Mexico’s Missing Persons: Sandra Barrón Ramírez, a 2017 Knight Visiting Nieman Fellow, is designing a universal data standard to organize information about missing persons in Mexico

By Sandra Barrón Ramírez• Niemans @ Work• February 12, 2018

In February 2015, Justicia Cotidiana (“Everyday Justice”) hosted a hackathon for journalists, developers, and designers in Mexico City, Mexico. It was there that I first heard the term “black figure” to refer to the disparity between the … Read more

Photographing Massacre Survivors as Individuals, not Statistics: Anastasia Taylor-Lind, NF ’16, creates a makeshift studio in a Rohingya refugee camp

By Anastasia Taylor-Lind• Niemans @ Work• February 5, 2018

Fatima, 15. (Name changed to protect her identity). Rohingya Tu Lar To Li massacre survivor. Kutupalong refugee camp, Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. Fatima survived a massacre of Rohingya at Tu Lar To Li in … Read more